Board game to help develop word recognition and spelling skills

ABSTRACT

A board game to help develop word recognition and spelling skills. The game includes a board having a path between a start position and a finish position for each player. Each player has a token which can be moved by forming words from letter cards, or by taking a SPELL IT challenge. The object of the game is to be the first player to get all of the player&#39;s tokens (bees) back to the player&#39;s finish position (hive).

The present invention relates generally to a board game to help developword recognition and spelling skills.

More particularly, the present invention relates to a board game whichenables the players to have fun arranging letters to form words, andchallenging the other players to spell the words on challenge cards.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The prior, but not necessarily relevant, art is exemplified by: SchmidtU.S. Pat. No. 5,505,456; Lackey U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,765; and Kummer U.S.Pat. No. 6,692,002.

It is a desideratum of the present invention to avoid the animadversionsof the prior art and conventional board games, and at the same timeprovide a fun and educational game to help children and other personsdevelop word recognition and spelling skills.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a board game to help develop wordrecognition and spelling skills, said board game comprising: a gameboard including a predetermined start position for each player, apredetermined finish position for each player, and a predetermined pathextending between each player's predetermined start position and thatplayer's predetermined finish position; each said path being dividedinto discrete spaces; a plurality of tokens, with a predetermined numberof said tokens being reserved for each player; and the number of spacesadvanced by the token of each player on each turn being governed atleast in part by the number of letters on letter cards that are combinedto form a word by the player.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a fun andeducational spelling bee board game to help children and other personsto develop word recognition and spelling skills.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a board game asdescribed hereinabove, by which children and other persons will have fununscrambling letters to form words and challenging the other players tospell the words on the Spell It challenge cards.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a board gameas set forth hereinabove, which comprises a game board, a Spell It carddeck, a letter card deck, and 16 tokens.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a board gameas set forth hereinabove, wherein the object of the game is to be thefirst player to get all four of his/her tokens (bees) back to the finishposition (hive) and thereby winning the game.

Other objects, advantages, and features of the present invention willbecome more apparent to those persons skilled in this particular area oftechnology and to other persons after having been exposed to thefollowing detailed description when read in conjunction with theaccompanying patent drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates the front and back of a letter card used in thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates the front and back of a Wild Star letter card.

FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6 illustrate the front and back of exemplary SPELL ITcards used in the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a top plan view of a game board in accordance with apreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 shows a top plan view of a token in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 9 illustrates an elevational view of the FIG. 8 token in accordancewith the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIGS. 1 through 9, a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention will be described hereinbelow.

Preferably, but not necessarily, the board game in accordance with thepresent invention may be played by two to four players.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, theboard game includes a game board 10, a deck 11 of SPELL IT cards, e.g.20 or 21, a deck 12 of letter cards 15, and sixteen tokens 13.

The object of the game is to be the first player to get all four ofhis/her tokens (bees) 13 back to a finish position (hive) 14, therebywinning the game. In order to move his/her tokens 13 around the board10, a player must spell words using the letter cards 15 in his/her hand.The larger the word a player is able to spell, the more spaces 19 he/shecan move a single token 13.

To set up the game, each player draws a letter card 15. The player withthe highest letter in the alphabet goes first. Play proceeds clockwisearound the board 10. Each player draws an additional six letter cards 15so that each have a total of seven letter cards 15. At this point, playbegins. The player chosen to go first spells a word and moves a token 13from a predetermined start position (e.g., the flower) 16, countingSTART space 24 as his/her first move.

In game play, tokens 13 can be moved on the board 10 in two ways. Thefirst way is by forming words with the letter cards 15. The second wayis by taking a SPELL IT challenge.

To move a token 13 by forming a word with letter cards 15, the playerdraws letter cards 15 and spells words by arranging the letters 17 onthe letter cards 15. The larger the word, the more spaces a token 13 canbe moved. As an example, “A” a one-letter word, allows a player to moveone space 19, while “Be” a two-letter word allows the player to move twospaces 19, and “Cat” a three-letter word allows the player to move threespaces 19. A Wild Star card 18 can be used as any letter of thealphabet.

At the beginning of his/her turn, a player must have seven letter cards15 in his/her hand. Once a word is spelled, the player will draw thenumber of letter cards 15 used to spell the word from the letter carddeck 12, returning that player's hand of letter cards 15 to a total ofseven.

A player who uses all seven of the letter cards 15 in his/her handreceives a bonus of ten spaces 19 to move his/her token 13 and can, ifhe/she wishes, split the moves between all four of his/her tokens 13, inwhatever numeric pattern desired.

A player who is unable to spell a word forfeits a turn, after discardingeither one, two or three letter cards 15 and drawing replacement cards15 from the deck 12. The player chooses how many and which cards 15 todiscard. If no cards 15 are left in the active play pile 12, the discardpile is shuffled and placed back in active play.

The letter card deck 12 consists of 56 cards in the following format:A-3 cards B-2 cards C-2 cards D-2 cards E-3 cards F-1 card G-2 cards H-1card I-3 cards J-1 card K-1 card L-3 cards M-3 cards N-3 cards O-3 cardsP-1 card Q-1 card R-3 cards S-3 cards T-3 cards U-2 cards V-1 card W-1card X-1 card Y-1 card Z-1 card Wild Star - 4 cards

When a token 13 lands on a SPELL IT space 25 on the game board 10, theplayer draws a SPELL IT card 20 or 21 and can challenge any other playerto spell the word on the SPELL IT card 20 or 21. Each SPELL IT card 20or 21 is worth a number of movement spaces 19 between one and five,which are listed below each word on the SPELL IT card 20 or 21. As anexample, the word “ANT” is worth three spaces 19.

If the challenged player spells the word correctly, he/she can move atoken 13 the number of spaces 19 the card 20 or 21 is worth on the gameboard 10. If the challenged player spells the word incorrectly, then theplayer acting as challenger can move one of his/her tokens 13 the numberof spaces 19 the card 20 or 21 is worth.

The SPELL IT deck 11 also includes two special types of cards; four GoBack To Start cards 22, and four Pass It cards 23.

If a player draws a Go Back To Start card 22, the stakes of thechallenge increase for both the player drawing the card 22 and theplayer being challenged. If the challenged player can correctly spellthe word on the card 22, the challenged player selects one of thechallenger's tokens 13 to go back to the predetermined start position16. If the word on the card 22 is spelled incorrectly, the challengedplayer must send a token 13, chosen by the challenger, back to thepredetermined start position 16. Tokens 13 which have already arrived atthe predetermined finish location (the hive) 14 cannot be sent back tostart 16 and are considered “safe”.

At any time a word is misspelled, requiring a player to move a token 13back a given number of spaces 19 toward the predetermined start position16, it should be noted that the token 13 cannot be moved passed thepredetermined start position 16. If additional moves are required, afirst token 13 is moved to the predetermined start position 16 and asecond token 13 moved the balance of the number of spaces 19 required.

If a player draws a Pass It card 23, he/she may keep it aside until aSPELL IT challenge. When challenged, the player has the option ofaccepting the challenge or playing the Pass It card 23 to avoid spellingthe word on the SPELL IT card without penalty. Playing the Pass It card23 allows the challenged player to choose a different player to take thechallenge and attempt to spell the word on the SPELL IT card 20 or 21.Play continues as described hereinabove between the new challengedplayer and the challenger.

It should be noted that when only two players are playing the game, thePass It card 23 stops the challenge, and game play continues as normal,proceeding to the next player's turn.

Alternative game styles can be played, including: adding additionalbooster packs of Spell It Challenge cards for specific grade levels ormixed levels; changing the number of tokens used from four to three oreven two tokens; doubling the listed word values including words beingspelled by players, the bonus for using all seven letters and the SPELLIt challenge space values; implementing an alternate SPELL IT challengewherein if the challenged player spells the word incorrectly, thechallenged player must move a token 13 chosen by the challenger back thenumber of spaces 19 the card 20 or 21 is worth; different combinationsof alternatives listed hereinabove.

There will now be described a deck of SPELL IT challenge words to beused for play by players in school grades 2 to 6. Each pack, regardlessof its age or grade level and all multi-age packs contain four Pass Itcards 23, four spelling words with a worth of “go back to start” and 44spelling words worth various spaces 19.

A deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words for use for play by players inschool grades 2 to 6 would include the following words with a worth oftwo spaces 19: drum, eye, song, mouth, fit, bear, whole, mend, cried,staff, goose, pure.

The deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words would also include the followingwords with a worth of three spaces 19: elbow, mitten, blanket, churn,unlock, agree, rabbit, rough, noisy, cellar, ivory, coach.

The deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words would also include the followingwords with a worth of four spaces 19: inquire, source, cracker, quilt,socket, ignore, garbage, railway, guitar, activity.

The deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words would also include the followingwords with a worth of five spaces 19: invention, newspaper, infinite,conscious, faucet, cabbage, concern, dessert, enterprise.

The deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words would also include the followingwords with a worth of “go back to start”: manageable, requirement,significance, judgment.

The deck 11 of SPELL IT challenge words would also include four Pass Itcards 23.

There have been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and describedhereinabove only several preferred embodiments of the present inventionwhich can be varied.

It should be understood that many changes, modifications, variations,and other uses and applications will become apparent to those personsskilled in this particular area of technology and to other persons afterhaving been exposed to the present patent specification and accompanyingpatent drawings.

Any and all such changes, modifications, variations, and other uses andapplications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention are therefore covered by and embraced within thepresent invention and patent application.

1. A board game to help develop word recognition and spelling skills,said board game comprising: a game board including a predetermined startposition for each player, a predetermined finish position for eachplayer, and a predetermined path extending between each player'spredetermined start position and that player's predetermined finishposition; each said path being divided into discrete spaces; a pluralityof tokens, with a predetermined number of said tokens being reserved foreach player; and the number of spaces advanced by the token of eachplayer on each turn being governed at least in part by the number ofletters on letter cards that are combined to form a word by the player.2. A board game according to claim 1, wherein: each said player has apredetermined number of tokens; and the object of the game is to be thefirst player to move all of his/her predetermined tokens to thatplayer's finish position and thereby win the game.
 3. A board gameaccording to claim 1, wherein: in order to move a token around said gameboard, a player must spell words using said letter cards; and the moreletters in the spelled word, the more spaces which can be moved by asingle token.
 4. A board game according to claim 2, wherein: in order tomove a token around said game board, a player must spell words usingsaid letter cards; and the more letters in the spelled word, the morespaces which can be moved by a single token.
 5. A board game accordingto claim 1, wherein: moving a token on said game board is done in twoways; a first said way is by forming words from said letter cards; and asecond said way is by taking a SPELL IT challenge.
 6. A board gameaccording to claim 2, wherein: moving a token on said game board is donein two ways; a first said way is by forming words from said lettercards; and a second said way is by taking a SPELL IT challenge.
 7. Aboard game according to claim 3, wherein: moving a token on said gameboard is done in two ways; a first said way is by forming words fromsaid letter cards; and a second said way is by taking a SPELL ITchallenge.
 8. A board game according to claim 4, wherein: moving a tokenon said game board is done in two ways; a first said way is by formingwords from said letter cards; and a second said way is by taking a SPELLIT challenge.
 9. A board game according to claim 1, wherein: said boardgame includes said game board, a deck of SPELL IT cards, a deck of saidletter cards, and said tokens; there is provided one or more SPELL ITspaces on each said predetermined path; and when a token lands on one ofsaid SPELL IT spaces on said game board, a player associated with saidtoken draws a SPELL IT card and can challenge any other player to spellthe word on the drawn SPELL IT card.
 10. A board game according to claim2, wherein: said board game includes said game board, a deck of SPELL ITcards, a deck of said letter cards, and said tokens; there is providedone or more SPELL IT spaces on each said predetermined path; and when atoken lands on one of said SPELL IT spaces on said game board, a playerassociated with said token draws a SPELL IT card and can challenge anyother player to spell the word on the drawn SPELL IT card.
 11. A boardgame according to claim 3, wherein: said board game includes said gameboard, a deck of SPELL IT cards, a deck of said letter cards, and saidtokens; there is provided one or more SPELL IT spaces on each saidpredetermined path; and when a token lands on one of said SPELL ITspaces on said game board, a player associated with said token draws aSPELL IT card and can challenge any other player to spell the word onthe drawn SPELL IT card.
 12. A board game according to claim 4, wherein:said board game includes said game board, a deck of SPELL IT cards, adeck of said letter cards, and said tokens; there is provided one ormore SPELL IT spaces on each said predetermined path; and when a tokenlands on one of said SPELL IT spaces on said game board, a playerassociated with said token draws a SPELL IT card and can challenge anyother player to spell the word on the drawn SPELL IT card.
 13. A boardgame according to claim 5, wherein: said board game includes said gameboard, a deck of SPELL IT cards, a deck of said letter cards, and saidtokens; there is provided one or more SPELL IT spaces on each saidpredetermined path; and when a token lands on one of said SPELL ITspaces on said game board, a player associated with the token draws aSPELL IT card and can challenge any other player to spell the word onthe drawn SPELL IT card.
 14. A board game according to claim 6, wherein:said board game includes said game board, a deck of SPELL IT cards, adeck of said letter cards, and said tokens; there is provided one ormore SPELL IT spaces on each said predetermined path; and when a tokenlands on one of said SPELL IT spaces on said game board, a playerassociated with the token draws a SPELL IT card and can challenge anyother player to spell the word on the drawn SPELL IT card.
 15. A boardgame according to claim 7, wherein: said board game includes said gameboard, a deck of SPELL IT cards, a deck of said letter cards, and saidtokens; there is provided one or more SPELL IT spaces on each saidpredetermined path; and when a token lands on one of said SPELL ITspaces on said game board, a player associated with said token draws aSPELL IT card and can challenge any other player to spell the word onthe drawn SPELL IT card.
 16. A board game according to claim 8, wherein:said board game includes said game board, a deck of SPELL IT cards, adeck of said letter cards, and said tokens; there is provided one ormore SPELL IT spaces on each said predetermined path; and when a tokenlands on one of said SPELL IT spaces on said game board, a playerassociated with said token draws a SPELL IT card and can challenge anyother player to spell the word on the drawn SPELL IT card.
 17. A boardgame according to claim 9, wherein: each said SPELL IT card is worth adifferent number of movement spaces listed below the word appearing onsaid SPELL IT card; if said challenged player spells the word on saidSPELL IT card correctly, then said challenged player can move one ofhis/her tokens the number of spaces said SPELL IT card is worth; and ifsaid challenged player spells the word incorrectly, then said challengercan move one of his/her token the number of spaces indicated on saidSPELL IT card.
 18. A board game according to claim 10 wherein: each saidSPELL IT card is worth a different number of movement spaces listedbelow the word appearing on said SPELL IT card; if said challengedplayer spells the word on said SPELL IT card correctly, then saidchallenged player can move one of his/her tokens the number of spacessaid SPELL IT card is worth; and if said challenged player spells theword incorrectly, then the challenger can move one of his/her token thenumber of spaces indicated on said SPELL IT card.
 19. A board gameaccording to claim 11 wherein: each said SPELL IT card is worth adifferent number of movement spaces listed below the word appearing onsaid SPELL IT card; if said challenged player spells the word on saidSPELL IT card correctly, then said challenged player can move one ofhis/her tokens the number of spaces said SPELL IT card is worth; and ifsaid challenged player spells the word incorrectly, then said challengercan move one of his/her token the number of spaces indicated on saidSPELL IT card.
 20. A board game according to claim 16, wherein: eachsaid SPELL IT card is worth a different number of movement spaces listedbelow the word appearing on said SPELL IT card; if said challengedplayer spells the word on the SPELL IT card correctly, then saidchallenged player can move one of his/her tokens the number of spacessaid SPELL IT card is worth; and if said challenged player spells theword incorrectly, then said challenger can move one of his/her token thenumber of spaces indicated on said SPELL IT card.